Warburg hired Credit Suisse last year to sound out buyers for its 70 per cent stake ATG, which would make it the second-biggest private equity deal in India following Bain’s acquisition of Genpact.

Bain Capital and Carlyle are understood to have looked at Alliance Tire, although dropped out of the sale process after the valuation rose, the Financial Times said, adding that the auction is already past the first round and the sale process could be completed in a matter of weeks.

Warburg Pincus bought its stake in Alliance in 2007 for $150m.

The Mumbai-based Mahansaria family, which holds the remaining 30 per cent interest in ATG, will stay invested in the business, the Economic Times of India previously reported.

The company’s sales are likely to exceed $500m in the current financial year, with EBITDA forecast to reach between $80m and $100m, the report added.